van winkle



.(NO Model) 2 SheetsSheet 1.

J. E. VAN WINKLE.

OPENER AND CLEANER FOR FIBROUS MATERIALS. No. 299,297; Patented 3y 2?,1884.

J. E. VAN WINKLE.

OPENER AND CLEANER FOR FIBROUS MATERIALS No. 299,297. 2 alt ented May27, 1884,

} (No Model.) 2 sheets sheet 2'.

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JOHN E. VAN WINKLE, OF PATERSON, NEW JERSEY.

OPENER ANDVCLEANER FDR FiBROUS MATERFALS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 299,297, dated May 2'7,1884.-

Application filed January 2, 1883.

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, J OIIN E. VAN WINKLE, of the city of Paterson, inthe county of Passaic and State of New Jersey, have invented a new anduseful Improvement in Openers and Cleaners for Fibrous Materials, ofwhich the following is a specification.

My invention principally relates to the class of machines for openingand cleaning cotton and other fibrous materials which comprises two ormore rotary shafts provided with 1363.131

ers which beat and open the fibrous materials, a delivery-apron, and arotary screen or perforated or reticulated cylinder, between which andsaid apron the opened materials are delivered, and a vacuum fan oreXhauster for exhausting air from said screen or cylinder; but certainfeatures of my invention may be embodied in machines which do notcomprise all these features.

The invention consists in a novel arrangement and combination, with thebeater shafts and their casing, of a feeding-apron and feeding-rollers,and in the combination, with a casing and the beater-shafts, of beatersof different forms arranged in a novel manner, all of which features arehereinafter more fully described, and illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings.

In the drawings, Figure 1 represents a plan ofmy improved machine. Fig.2 represents a vertical section on thedotted line iv 00, Fig. 1. Fig. 3represents a vertical section on the dotted line y y, Fig. 1. Fig. 4represents a vertical section and partial elevation on the dotted line:4 2, Fig. 3; and Fig. 5 represents a plan of the beater-shaft andbeaters.

Similar letters of reference designate corresponding parts in all thefigures.

A designates the lower portion of the easing of the machine, A-designates the upper portion or hood thereof, and A designates thecasing for the rotary sereen,hereinafter described. This casing mayconsist of a wood or cast-iron frame, closed in so as to form a casingwhich is approximately air-tight.

B B designate the beater-shafts, which are connected or geared togetherat one end by a belt, a, and pulleys a, so as to rotate in the samedirection, and at the other end the shaft "B is provided with fast andloose pulleys Z) I),

The beat for the reception of a driving-belt.

er-shaft B, therefore, forms the driving-shaft of the machine.

(No model.)

At one end of the upper portion or hood, A, is an inlet or feed opening,a, and above and on top of the hood is a feeding-apron, O, which worksin a trough or receptacle, 0. The apron C is supported by rollers d dand an intermediate roller or idler, (F, as best shown in Fig. 2, and atthe end where the feed-opening c is situated there is a fourth or upperroller, (1 the journals of which play in slots at in the sides of thetrough G. The roller d rests with its weight upon the cotton or otherfibrous material on the apron G, and rises and falls slightly toaccommodate itself to irregularities in the amount of cotton on theapron. Nearly all the air which enters the casing A enters with thefibrous materials and the combinatioirof the apron and rollers gives amuch more regular feed of air and fibrous materials than is possiblewith a hand feed.

Upon the shaft of the apron-roller d is a bevel-wheel, e, and afriction-wheel,f, andup on the shaft of the upper or gravity roller,(2?, is a corresponding friction-wheel, f, engaging with the wheel f.WVhen the quantity of material on the apron O is sufficient to raise thegravity-roller d in its bearings, the latter will rotate by frictionalcontact with the material alone. \Vhen, however, the quantity ofmaterial on .the apron is not sufficient to so raise the said roller, itwill be rotated by the friction-wheels ff, and the loose locks ofmaterial will be prevented from piling up behind the roller, as might bethe case if the roller remained stationary. The rotation of the roller(2* by the wheels f f,when the quantity of material on the apron G isinsufficient to raise the said roller, eonduces to an even and uniformfeed of material. The arrangement of the feeding-trough O andfeedingapron O on the top of the casing and lengthwise of and parallelwith the casing and beatershafts is very desirable, because iteconomizes space, and also because the feeding-trough and apron can thenbe made of great length, thus affording ample opportunityfor theattendant to evenly distribute the material over the apron afterthrowing it thereon and before it reaches the feed ing-opening c.

D designates a shaft which carries a bevelpinion, c, engaging with thebevel-wheel e, and which receives motion by a belt, D, from a secondshaft, E. Theshaft E is driven by a belt, 0 from the driving-shaft B,said belt passing over a pulley, on said shaft E. At the opposite end ofthe casing from the feedopening 0 is the delivery-opening g, and thecotton entering at c all has to pass to the opening 9, which is on theside opposite the shaft Upon the shafts B B are heaters, which not onlybeat and open the cotton or other fibrous materials, but which alsocause the same with heaters F tend to open the materials, and also aidin feeding the same along.

Following the heaters-F are straight-armed heaters Fiwhich performeffectively the work of opening the maj terials not already opened orloosened, and the heaters F are continued to the end ofthe shaft B. Onthe end of the shaftB are one, two,

or more broad-bladed heaters, F, the purpose of which is to throw theopened cotton or other materials across the casing and within range ofthe heaters F on the shaft B, which throw the opened material into thedelivery-opening g. The peculiar arrangement of heaters on the shafts BB produces a positive feed of the materials through the machine andinsures their being uniformly and thoroughly beaten and cleaned.

In Fig. 3 I have shown a scutching-hlade, G, in conjunction withwhich'the heaters act. This scutching-blade is secured to the top of atimber, G, in thelwood casing-by means of screws h or other devices, andprojects nearly to the circle described by the ends of the beaters. Whenthe one edge of the said blade be comes worn round and is no longereffective, I remove the hood A and take out or loosen the screws h, orother devices which secure the blade, and I then reverse the blade orchange it end for end, and bring the opposite edge, which is sharp andeffective, into a position for use.

might be dispensed with, and the frame constructed so as to serve thepurpose of a scutching-blade.

' the ends of the heaters, but of a slightly greater radius.

When thus constructed, the beaters on the shaft B tend to throw thecotton or other materials upward and against the shaftB,which-preventsthe heaters on the latter shaft from workingeffectively. To prevent If the frame of the ma chine were of iron, thisseparate blade G this, I make the grid approximately flat below andbetween thetwo shafts, and then both sets of heaters can workeffectively. The grid here shown is composed of a central or midpleportion, 2', made of perforated sheet metal, and supported upon bars 2"and several longitudinal bars, '6 at each side of the portion t. The twocurved edge portions i may be solid or perforated.

I designates the delivery-apron, extending from the delivery-opening g,and mounted on rollers jj and an intermediate roller, ft. The shaft Ehas upon its end a pinion, k, which gears into and drives a toothedwheel, is, mounted on a stud, 75 Attached to the wheel is a pulley, Z,from which a belt, Z, extends to a pulley, F, 011 the shaft of theapron-roller j, and thereby operates the apron.

J designates a rotary screen or a perforated or reticulated cylinderarranged over the apron I, and between it and the apron the cleaned andopened materials are delivered.

Upon the shaft of the screen or cylinder J is a gear-wheel, J, andattached to and rotating with the wheel 70 and pulley l is a pinion, Z,which engages with the wheel J and drives the screen J.

At the side of the casing A of the screen J is a blower-casing, K, whichcommunicates by openings m with the interior of the screen,

and contains an exhaust-fan, K, which is driven by a belt, K", from apulley, K on the shaft B. The opening in the casing A through which theapron I passes is closed by a roller,

L, below which the opened and cleaned materials pass as they aredelivered by the apron.

It will be observed that inasmuch asall the movable parts of the machineare driven from the shaft B, only one driving-belt from theline-shafting to the machine is necessary.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination, with the casing provided with a feedopening in thetop at one end and a delivery-opening at the other end, of beater-shaftsand heaters arranged in said casing, mechanism for rotating saidheatershafts, a feeding trough or receptacle arranged on top of saidcasing lengthwise thereof and parallel with the beater-shafts, afeeding-apron in said trough or receptacle, and means for operating saidapron, a roller above said apron at the feedingopening, and bearings forsaid roller, which permit of its rising and falling as the quantity ofmaterial on the feeding-apron varies, substantially as herein described.

2. The combination, with the casing provided with a feeding-opening atone end and a delivery-opening at the other end, of the beater-shafts BB, mechanism for rotating said shafts, the heaters F F F F on the shaftB, and the heaters F F F on the shaft B, substantially as hereindescribed.

Witnesses: J. E. VAN WIN KLE.

FREDK. HAYNES, ED. L. MORAN.

IIO

